Wintering in Florida 2018

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Murphcrud

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Another Newbie Question ---

We are looking to winter in Sunny Florida, Punta Gorda, Ft Myers, Naples, Keys area, for 4-5 months.
Prefer to move around, if this is possible ( 2 weeks here, 2 weeks there)

Are sites readily available for a Motor Home requiring hookups?  Or do we need to book sooner than later.

Thank you for feedback.

Harv
 
I don't think your plan is doable unless you have already made your reservations. Florida is the most popular tourist destination in the country and it gets really crowded here. Find an opening and plan on staying there all winter and use your toad to see the state.
 
SeilerBird said:
I don't think your plan is doable unless you have already made your reservations. Florida is the most popular tourist destination in the country and it gets really crowded here. Find an opening and plan on staying there all winter and use your toad to see the state.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply.  Nothing booked --yet.  We have seen the state -- all of it -  like this side best.  Will consider long term in same location if our original plan can not be accomplished.

Any recommendations and secret spots that you can share?
 
Murphcrud said:
Another Newbie Question ---

We are looking to winter in Sunny Florida, Punta Gorda, Ft Myers, Naples, Keys area, for 4-5 months.
Prefer to move around, if this is possible ( 2 weeks here, 2 weeks there)

Are sites readily available for a Motor Home requiring hookups?  Or do we need to book sooner than later.

Thank you for feedback.

Harv
Click to expand...

You need to make reservations NOW!  If now you will not be able to find anything.  As a local (Cape Coral right out side of Ft Myers) we have problems all year long getting reservations.  My sis works at the KOA in Naples and during the season Nov thru April they turn away people all the time because the people just come down thinking that there will be spots.  Usually there aren't any. 

Good luck and I hope you come and enjoy our beautiful area of this world....
 
Right now is the time to book. If you wait and try to wing it, you may get a site here and there, but in general you will lose out. Especially in the Keys and south Florida.
I know our park in Key Largo is booked solid all winter long except maybe for an emergency cancellation

Jack L
 
In the Keys there may be lingering effects of that hurricane in September. I was down there a couple months after and saw a lot of damage. This year won't be like all the others.
 
You may be able to snag something this coming winter.  I've read elsewhere that a lot of Canadians are canceling plans to  come down.
 
I do know that in our park just outside of Naples, on the road to Marco Island (Hwy 951),  the available rental sites for next season and longer term are generally reserved for the following season by April of the current year. Based on past experience there will be a few available on short notice during the season but you cannot count on that in most cases. We have about 635 sites in all, but many are now park models and thus are no longer RV specific sites. http://www.silverlakesrvresort.com/
 
I know this isn't the location you asked about, but we needed a site for 2 weeks last January as we were moving from Winter Haven back to Lakeland and were between houses during that time. I was surprised that we were able to get a last-minute site at Sanlan RV Park in Lakeland, which is between Tampa & Orlando.  You didn't specify a budget, and Sanlan isn't cheap, which may be the reason why they weren't full.
 
We winter all over Florida each winter, mostly at state and federal parks for 1-2 weeks at a time. We make most of our reservations for the following winter before we leave during the current winter, usually within seconds of the 11 month reservation window opening for the state parks. Even then it's a crap shoot whether we'll get a preferred site, or even any site at all, at many parks. We always have a few "Plan B' parks in mind that we can use to fill gaps on our calendar if needed.
 
Dance Chick said:
I was surprised that we were able to get a last-minute site at Sanlan RV Park in Lakeland, which is between Tampa & Orlando.  You didn't specify a budget, and Sanlan isn't cheap, which may be the reason why they weren't full.
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The rates are the reason you were able to get a site. 2 years ago, the old goat went up quite a bit on his rates and because of this, he lost quite a few campers. He still hasn't totally recovered. The first time we went there was February of 2013 and we just barely got in. When he went up on his rates, if we had gone the same time frame two years ago, (end of November to the end of April) It would have cost about $1500 more. 
He also changed the season dates. The thing is that the earlier you go, the rates are lower and you keep the same rate the entire stay. So now we go down the middle of October which isn't a bad thing.
 
Dance Chick said:
I know this isn't the location you asked about, but we needed a site for 2 weeks last January as we were moving from Winter Haven back to Lakeland and were between houses during that time. I was surprised that we were able to get a last-minute site at Sanlan RV Park in Lakeland, which is between Tampa & Orlando.  You didn't specify a budget, and Sanlan isn't cheap, which may be the reason why they weren't full.
Click to expand...

We aren't looking for cheap.  We are looking for clean, amenities, and near the water.
A place to relax or be as busy as we wish. 
Thank you
 
I agree that winter season reservations for the warmer climes in southern Florida should be booked  as soon as they  are available.  If you are willing to consider further north, such as Tampa Bay, there may be some county / municipal parks (like Fort DeSoto) who don't book reservations until 6 moths prior.  Because they are such a popular park, whenever we have had reservations at Fort DeSoto we have also had a "back up" reservation for the same period, usually` at a state park in the interior if the state.

Keys?  Good luck!
 
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